


I. Karen

by sadieradler (panakaatthedisco)



Series: 5 Times Kieran Felt Like He Was Welcome in the Gang (And 1 Time He Actually Was) [1]
Category: Red Dead Redemption (Video Games)
Genre: 5+1 Things, Chapter 2: Horseshoe Overlook (Red Dead Redemption 2), Chapter 3: Clemens Point (Red Dead Redemption 2), Fluff, Found Family, No Spoilers, Pre-Chapter 4, it's there for like two seconds though so I'm not bothering to tag it, so if you're not there yet you're good, there's like. the tiniest bit of Mary-Beth/Kieran if you squint really hard
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-30
Updated: 2021-01-30
Packaged: 2021-03-16 03:01:09
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 778
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29075229
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/panakaatthedisco/pseuds/sadieradler
Summary: No longer a prisoner but not quite a fully-fledged member of the gang, Kieran struggles to find his place among the Van der Lindes. It's the small things, the off-handed comments or simple gestures of kindness, that truly begin to make him feel like maybe, just maybe, there's a spot in the gang for him.
Series: 5 Times Kieran Felt Like He Was Welcome in the Gang (And 1 Time He Actually Was) [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2133174
Comments: 5
Kudos: 12





	I. Karen

**Author's Note:**

> Part of a 5 + 1 writing exercise I did ages ago for a friend, posting this now in the hopes of maybe(?) starting to get a consistent updating schedule.
> 
> This is my first published Red Dead fic so please be kind OTL

It’s a good night for Dutch’s Boys.

Lenny and Bill had had a successful robbery and taken close to 100 dollars in cash from a payroll stagecoach on its way to Strawberry. With everyone in high spirits, the liquor flows freely and the music plays loudly. It’s been two weeks since Kieran was untied from that godforsaken tree, but there are still bruises on his wrists from where the ropes dug into his skin, gone yellow and fading but still serving as an aching reminder of his time as an outcast among the gang.

Though really, he hasn’t stopped being an outcast, even if he’s no longer their prisoner. He lives in a sort of limbo, stuck between being a disloyal traitor who sold out his old gang, or a secret spy still in cahoots with the O’Driscolls. No one seems to be able to make up their mind about which one he is, and that brings him here: sitting by the treeline, cutting pieces off an apple to share with Branwen - the only friendly one around here, it would seem.

“At least _you_ still like me,” Kieran sighs, holding his hand out flat with a piece of the apple perched on top. Branwen’s lips tickle his palm, but he keeps it steady for him, even as he slobbers all over him. Wiping his hands on his ratty coat, he gives Branwen’s speckled neck a pat. “You might be the only one in the world who can even stand me, Branwen.”

“You talkin’ to a horse?”

Jumping nearly a foot in the air at the sound of a voice from behind him, Kieran whirls around with the knife clutched tight to his chest, as if he’s a small child being caught playing with something he shouldn’t have. He drops the apple in the process, which Branwen all but lunges for, eagerly plucking it from the dirt to polish off. “I-I - uh -”  
Karen chuckles, waving the bottle in her hand as if to settle him down - though really, it just makes his anxiety worse. “Relax, I ain’t here to judge,” Karen drawls, pulling up a chair from the domino table. “Come sit.”

When Kieran makes no move to come closer, she rolls her eyes. “I don’t bite, y’know. Now sit down, O’Driscoll.”

Kieran’s jaw sets with annoyance at the nickname, but he holds his tongue as he makes his way to the table, slinking into a seat across from her as if it was rigged with dynamite. He looks like he’s expecting a trap - but really, who could blame him?

Taking a long drink from the whiskey, Karen waves the bottle in front of his face. “Go on. Have some.”

Kieran blanches, glancing around suspiciously. “I...I dunno. I ain’t really s’pposed to be in camp, I don’t think. I should probably just...get back to the horses,” he stammers, fist twisting in the same stained shirt he’s been wearing since his capture.

Karen rolls her eyes. “Just take it, before I change my mind.”

Hesitating momentarily, Kieran finally reaches over to carefully take the bottle from her hands. It’s hardly his first drink, but he feels that same nervous anticipation he had when he was a teenager having his first beer. He swallows nervously, then tips it back and takes a drink.

It’s stronger than he expects, and he forces himself not to cough as he sets it down - unsuccessfully. “Jesus,” he chokes, turning away to face his shoulder.

Karen laughs. “Yeah. This is the _good_ stuff. Sean managed to nick it off those Skelding boys when they had him tied up. Only useful thing he’s ever brought back to the gang.”

Listening to her laugh at her own quip, Kieran feels the corner of his lip twitch with the urge to smile. Somehow, he feels like if he does, he’ll be breaking some secret rule of his residency that he doesn’t know about yet.

Thoughtful, he peels at the bottle’s label with his thumbnail, scratching over the printed letters until the ink smears on his fingers.

“Did you really mean what you said, the other day? About me being one of you now?” he asks quietly, finally voicing the question that’s been lingering in the back of his mind ever since their last conversation.

Karen doesn’t hesitate before answering. “ ‘Course I meant it. You’re just as much a part of this gang as anyone else. And like I said - we take care of our own.” She offers him a grin, reaching over to playfully punch his shoulder and swipe the bottle back. “And don’t you forget it, alright?”

This time, Kieran doesn’t stop himself from smiling.

“Alright.”


End file.
